16. His Butler, in an Isolated Castle
His Butler, in an Isolated Castle (その執事、孤城, Sono Shitsuji, Koshiro) is the sixteenth episode of season one of the Kuroshitsuji anime. Summary Ciel Phantomhive is having the Ludlow Castle turned into a hotel, but believing the ghosts are in there, the workers want to stop working and completely terminate the contract; so to Ciel's annoyance, he scoops out to investigate. Once entering inside the castle, they are reprimanded by Edward V for trespassing. Ciel apologizes for his rudeness and informs him that the castle now belongs to him. Edward notes that his brother is fascinated by Sebastian Michaelis, and they agree to play chess. If Ciel is to win, they will leave the castle; if Edward is to win, they keep Sebastian. However, despite telling Ciel to play fair, he cheats and morphs one of the chess pieces, allowing him to win. When Ciel calls him on this, he glows dark blue and angrily denies it, saying that he was just using his piece to the maximum potential. Sebastian agrees, saying Ciel was tied by superficial rules, which calms Edward. Ciel concedes, telling Sebastian to care for them with all of his heart. Edward tells Ciel to come back and play again, and then leaves with Sebastian and Richard. The following day, Richard is fascinated by Sebastian, following around to his chores. Sebastian tries to take the skull, so Richard can change, but Richard refuses to give it up. When Sebastian seems disinterested in the skull, he becomes more interested in sharing information about it. Elsewhere in the manor, Ciel reads more about Richard's and Edward's deaths, when Edward interrupts. He poses the questions Ciel is thinking, but says he cannot answer them. At dinner, they toast their new friendship, but Ciel is notably annoyed by Sebastian's ignorance of him and Edward's and Richard's claim on Sebastian. That night, Ciel struggles with tying a shoelace when Sebastian appears, but only because he was ordered to care for "the guest." Ciel then follows Edward, with Sebastian opening a false bookcase for him. Down in the crypt, Edward sadly states that he would like to see Richard go to heaven, meaning, he would like to obtain Richard's skull. Sebastian grabs Richard, and upset, Edward asks why they cannot be nicer, but Ciel merely mocks him for letting the problem fester for 200 years. Sebastian then takes the skull, and Richard's cries upset Edward. However, when he tries to attack, he misses, and when he looks up at Richard, he remembers their murders. When Ciel refuses to stop, he tries to order Sebastian as well, but Sebastian states that his contract is with Ciel alone. Ciel places Richard's skull on the chess board, but nothing happens. Richard reveals that it was not his skull and they remember the night of their murders. When they let go of their hatred and sadness, they begin to shine, bid Ciel and Sebastian farewell, then fade away. Ciel creates tombstones for them, then goes back on his promise to keep the castle as it was. Ciel then looks to the sky when the voice of Edward is heard laughingly calling Ciel a liar. Characters in Order of Appearance *Sebastian Michaelis *Edward V *Richard *Ciel Phantomhive Gallery 116 Edward and Richard.png Category:Kuroshitsuji Category:Episodes